Java and Kotlin are the two major Android mobile app development technologies.
Java
Java has been around for more than two decades. It is an Object-oriented Programming language (OOP). When Google launched Android in 2008, Java became the official language for building Android apps. Java can be used for web, app, or enterprise solutions.
Kotlin
Kotlin is a modern programming language. It was first released in 2011. Kotlin became the official development language for Android app development in 2017-2018 (after Google officially declared it). It offers a more concise syntax, making development faster and less error-prone. Kotlin also eliminates many of Java’s everyday issues, such as null pointer exceptions.
Pros of Java
- Java has a large community of developers.
- Java has been around for more than 2 decades.
- Java can handle complex projects.
- Java can be used for web development and enterprise development.
- There are more options for third-party libraries for Java because of its long-time existence.
Cons of Java
- Java uses more lines of code to perform the same task, but Kotlin needs fewer codes.
- The compilation time for Java is longer than that of Kotlin.
- Memory usage for Java-based apps is more than that of Kotlin-based apps.
- The APK size of Java-based apps is larger than that of Kotlin-based apps because of excessive boilerplate codes.
- Android developers take more time to build apps using Java because they write the boilerplate codes excessively.
Pros of Kotlin
- Kotlin allows app developers to write less and achieve more. It reduces their excessive use of boilerplate codes.
- Kotlin works seamlessly with the existing Java codes, allowing Android developers to migrate their Java-based mobile apps to Kotlin.
- The size of Android apps that are built using Kotlin is lightweight because of fewer boilerplate codes.
- Kotlin has excellent support in Android Studio.
- Google promotes Kotlin as the recommended language for new Android apps, so most Android developers use it.
Cons of Kotlin
- Java developers take more time to learn Kotlin because of the difference in codes & syntaxes.
- Kotlin takes more time to compile new apps for the first time.
- While it’s growing, Kotlin still has a small community of developers compared to Java.
- The history of stability of Kotlin is shorter than Java.
- The Kotlin compiler’s optimizations sometimes make debugging harder.
- Some of the old Android devices may not fully support Kotlin apps.
Final Thoughts: Java vs Kotlin
Java is a good choice if you need stability, faster compilation, and legacy support.
If you want modern features, concise code, and better performance, Kotlin is the better option for new projects.
Verdict:
Kotlin is the future of Android development, but Java is still relevant for maintaining older projects.